


The ties that bind

by Aeso3



Category: RWBY, Tales of Berseria
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2020-04-02
Packaged: 2021-03-01 05:22:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23379793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aeso3/pseuds/Aeso3
Summary: Two individuals, complete strangers in every sense of the word, leading completely different lives will find their fates intertwined with each other and form an unbreakable bond stronger than any ties to blood. A bond that will change their world. The journey to get there, however, will not be an easy one.
Relationships: Brother/Sister, Familial, Weiss/Laphicet, adopted siblings - Relationship
Kudos: 5





	1. Chapter 1

It was a strange phenomenon to experience. To see but not see, to feel, hear and even taste yet not truly experience those things at the same time. At least it was to the boy who was feeling all those things. He couldn't really make out what was really going on, let alone comprehend his situation. He could see and remember the faces of people who he knew were important to him yet they felt fleeting like it was a dream. Yes, it had to be a dream, for what else could explain how he was feeling right now. He could not, or did not understand what was going on or how it happened nor could he remember what he was supposed to be being.

It felt like he was forcefully pulled apart from where he was supposed to be; as if he was missing a piece of himself, unable to truly feel whole. This dream like state was beginning to frustrate the boy. He was like an infant, helpless inside the womb, unable to move or make sense of the world around him except through dreams of vivid images that gave him no ideas. However, the worst feeling he got from this was the feeling of isolation. Where he was, he did not know but it was like a shapeless, formless blank white void. From this place, he could somehow see it all: who he was, where he came from, his companions who cared for him and helped him form his own person. Perhaps he was trapped in his own head.

His name was Laphicet, part of a race called malakhim; that much was certain. He was once bound to the exorcist Teresa, before being kidnapped by a therion named Velvet Crowe, who would eventually give him his name and help him break out of his empty shell so he could have a will of his own. There were others as well. Rokurou, a friendly if strange Daemon from a far off land, Eizen, a no-nonsense pirate and fellow malak trapped with the reapers' curse who nevertheless held to his own conviction strong and proud, Magilou, an eccentric, crafty witch alongside her personal malak Bienfu and finally Eleanor, another exorcist and his new vessel, a very kind if a little uptight girl. These things were becoming clearer to him. He was starting to remember the many adventures they had; the fond memories that he would cherish.  
And yet, they were just that: memories. They showed visions of what had happened, of what he had seen and experienced but at the same time his companions were not here with him at the present and at the end of it all, he was all alone on the empty white expanse. Another thing that was bugging him was the fact that these memories were all events that had happened yet they never seemed to reach a conclusion. He couldn't remember what had happened to him or the fate of the others afterwards. It was all hazy like they were repressed inside of his subconsciousness.  
But just as he was starting to feel like he would be trapped in this eternal void forever, he began to hear the faint sound of voices in the distance. They were barely audible at first, being more akin to loud whispers, yet with each passing second, they grew louder and louder. Laphicet couldn't make out what they were saying but they sounded like children playing. Laughter filled the white void with the voices of kids playing around until they too eventually stopped as one of the children shouted to the others, seemingly out of a need to tell the others about something of importance. Suddenly, the voices of the other children returned as audible whispers and murmurs as if discussing amongst themselves. But alas, it seems it wouldn't matter much as he would still be trapped in this drea-  
"Hey! Wake up"

Laphicet felt a sudden jolt of continuous shaking as though he could actually feel a true sensation for once. Everything turned dark too as the white void disappeared and it felt like he could move his body again. Or at the very least move his eyes as he slowly opened them. His vision was blurry at best and it caused him great discomfort as the sunlight penetrated through his eyes. He could see blurry images of small figures surrounding him and staring at him curiously.  
"Where do you think he came from?" one of them asked; hearing those words Laphicet thought that at the very least it seems his ears were still working fine, which gave him a slight relief. "He looks like he's hurt pretty badly, maybe his home got hit by Grimm or the White Fang" another one answered. Grimm? White Fang? Laphicet had never heard of those terms before. "So, what should we do with him?" a small voice whimpered. "We should take him to back home before it gets worse for him. They can help him out" a louder, more confident voice uttered. "Yeah, let's take him there now" another one agreed, " C'mon help me carry him."

If what they said was true, then he must've been in a pretty bad shape when they found him. It probably explained why he was trapped in a coma like state and was unable to move. It would also explain the discomfort when opening his eyes or the numbness in his body, the implication of pain was something he now dreaded should his other sensations return. Fortunately, it seems it wouldn't be happening for now as he immediately fell back into unconsciousness as the children began lifting him up.  
________________________________________  
This time however, he would not slip into the eternal nothingness as he blacked out. For once, he could finally feel something. And not just the confusing sensation that he previously experienced, but something genuine again. He felt weak and tired, an effect that had taken over his entire body as exhaustion subdued him. Yet, it was mitigated by the touch of something soft, light and smooth from the back of his head and neck all the way to his feet. As he slowly regained more consciousness, Laphicet opened his eyes and found himself staring at some sort of ceiling and it was then that he realized he was in a bed of some sorts.

Using his still weak hands to support his weight as he raised himself to a seated position, the young malak was overwhelmed by the sensory input his brain was trying to register. It was a little bit too much to bear at first: to see, hear and touch the world around him for the first time in what felt like an eternity, but eventually his eyes, ears and skin became accustomed to them, although his body still felt weak and some parts like his back , shoulders and legs were aching with pain. As he looked around, he could see that he was wearing what looked like a plain shirt that felt a little big for him. His arms were covered in bandages while the lower half of his torso was hidden beneath a thick blanket. He felt like something was covering his forehead as well, which if he could guess, were probably bandages.

Aside from his own body, as he looked around, Laphicet saw rows of beds neatly placed beds just like the one he was on in a moderate sized and dimly lit room with one door. At this moment, he could only let out a sigh as he stared towards one of the four windows, wondering who the residence of this place was and what they were doing. The room itself had a pleasant aroma, though the strong smell of sterility was present as well which overpowered his olfactory senses. Uncertainty crept over him: it wasn't typical of him to be unsure of what was happening or where he was, but this time he was. Not knowing who saved him and where they took him in made him even more anxious. However, he did hear the sound of children before he blacked out, so he could safely assume that the children lived here as well. This was further supported by pages of colorful drawings plastered across the walls. As it were, Laphicet knew that there was only so much guessing that he could do, and with his weak body, he was in no position to move around and so resigned himself to patiently wait for the arrival of his rescuers to give him some answers.

As fate would have it, this anticipation did not take too long as Laphicet began hear the sound of footsteps coming in from one direction towards him, getting louder and louder. Eventually they stopped before the door as it slowly creaked open and from it, emerged a figure.  
"Oh, I see you're awake" the figure said with genuine surprise. The voice was feminine and as she came forward Laphicet could discern the details of her features. She seemed of be of decent height for an adult with a slender frame. The woman wore a light-colored robe that consisted of white and blue highlights and covered her entire body, as if to show modesty. Most of her head was covered with some sort of headdress with only a small glimpse of her hair, implying that she must be some sort of priestess or cleric for some religious organization, something that Laphicet thought upon as he observed her. Despite this, as she came closer, Laphicet noticed how young she looked from the soft facial features and glimpses of her amber hair slipping through the headdress that he could see.

"How are you feeling?" the woman asked, gently putting the palm of her hand on top of his forehead. Her hand felt soft and a sense of warmth emanated from it. "I-I'm feeling okay, just a little bit tired. That's all" Laphicet replied. "Well, that is to be expected. You were unconscious and bruised up" she smiled letting go of her hand from his forehead, "but it seems your fever has subsided".  
"What is your name dear?" she asked. Despite her youthful appearance, she had very motherly demeanor based on the body language she displayed which made him feel comfortable and put him at ease. She reminded him somewhat of Eleanor. Certainly, there were major differences, one of the most prominent being that he didn't fully know her yet though it seemed likely she and Eleanor would have gotten along quite well. "Laphicet" he answered.

"Laphicet?" she said, almost looking puzzled by it, "a fine name, though certainly a unique one. I've never heard of it before. Did your parents give you that name" she continued, almost as if she was really curious about it? The question, however, only left the boy stunned and speechless as he sat in silence before lowering his head and shaking it. The woman was taken aback by his answer though she quickly recovered, "I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have asked those things" she acknowledged his silent answer, as if she completely understood what he meant with an apologetic and regretful tone. To be fair, he wanted to tell her that he was a malak and thus was born through other means: a reincarnation of an unborn child in his case, but hesitated at the last second as he felt that it would needlessly complicate the situation. "It's okay. I didn't tell you about it, so there's nothing to be sorry about" the boy reassured, settling for playing along with her assumptions. The young woman came in closer to him before pulling him into a gentle hug, "I won't ask for details anymore my dear, but know that I'm here for you, as are others in this place". The embrace was surprising but the warmth of it was enough for him to lower his guard, for it brought back memories of his time with Velvet and the others. He didn't know how to really describe it to himself as he was lost in the moment but it felt good. "For now, you should rest until you've regained your strength" she said, slowly pulling away from him smiling "you may call me sister Valerie. I work here as a cleric and caretaker at this orphanage. If you need anything, please do not hesitate to tell me when I'm present, alright?"

"Alright" he answered back with a smile of his own. She slowly lowered him back down to a sleeping position before tucking his blanket back in to his upper half. "Good. Now get some rest Laphicet, I will return to check on you soon" the sister said as she made her way to the exit. As the door creaked shut, so did Laphicet shut his eyes, rested and content in knowing that he was in the hands of what seemed like decent people like her. At least for now.  
________________________________________  
A day had passed by and the young malak had almost made a full recovery. The nun Valerie had been his only contact with the world outside so far, feeding him and helping unwrap his bandages. Yet, there were a still a lot of things unaccounted for and he had many questions he needed answered. "Good morning Laphicet, how are you feeling today?" she greeted, making her way to him with a tray for food. "I feel a lot better Sister Valerie" Laphicet answered back, getting to a seated position. "That's good to hear" she said as she laid the tray on his lap, "there's something I want to show you but for now, have your breakfast first".

Laphicet stared at the food placed at his lap before digging in. It consisted of two small loaves of bread and a bowl of stew, the contents of which he did not know but it was more than enough to salivate him. As he dined on his breakfast, Valeria left the room before coming back after a few minutes with a small bag. "I see you've finished your food" she said taking the empty tray away from him while handing him the bag. "Umm, so what's this?" the boy asked. "These are the clothes you wore when we found you" she answered. Looking into the contents of the bag, Laphicet could indeed see that they were his: the robe, the leggings, the neckerchief, and even the bell collar he wore were there, fresh and in pristine condition. "We had them washed, ironed out and stitched as well" Valerie continued.

Laphicet face lit up and glowed upon hearing that, delighted to know that he still had some his old possession with him. "Wow, thank you so much, Sister Valerie!" he exclaimed. "It's quite alright" she answered with a smile, "now, get dressed and meet me outside the door. I believe it's time I showed you around " she continued as she left the room once again.  
Minutes later, Laphicet emerged from the door wearing his normal clothes again; it would seem that he had made a full recovery and could walk perfectly fine as far as the nun could see. "Are you ready?" the nun asked to which the Malak answered with a firm nod. Acknowledging his reply, Valerie motioned for him to follow her. As he followed her through a large wooden hallway, he could see various images of children and possibly the clerics framed together and hung on the wall.

"Do you like them?' she asked, noticing his intense stares. "Yeah! These paintings look so real!" he exclaimed, to which Sister Valerie let out a small giggle. "These are not paintings silly, they're photographs" she explained. Laphicet tilted his head sideways and looked at her with confusion: for he had never even heard of the word photograph or what it even was. The nun was bewildered at his confusion, for through her point of view it would seem he had very little education or knowledge of the world around him. "Do you really not know what a photograph is, Laphicet? or is it that you don't even know what a camera to begin with?" she questioned him with a raised eyebrow, to which he answered by shaking his head and uttering "nuh uh". 'It seems not having parents around has affected his education' she thought, resting the palm of her hand on her forehead. "Very well, it seems we'll have a lot to teach you" she states with a sigh. Eventually, they turned towards a corridor leading to a moderate sized stairway. Going down the stairs, Laphicet could see a receptionist desk to his right side and a large door at the front. In front of the desk was a man who also wore robes of the same color pattern, with a short brown hair slicked back and a pair of spectacles, implying that he too must be a cleric.

"Ah! Sister Valerie, good morning!" he greeted, "and this must be our young guest" the man continued looking down towards Laphicet. "Laphicet, let me introduce you to Brother Gregory" she announced, "he looks after this place and the children like I do."  
"Children?" the young Malak inquired. "Ah yes, of course, I've forgotten to mention where you are" she said with a tinge of guilt, "you're in an orphanage. The Solitus Home for Lost Children to be exact". An orphanage? He thought to himself: It would explain all of the beds, the pictures of the children and the colorful drawings he saw. "So….is this place anywhere near Midgand?" he inquired. "Midgand?" the nun and the cleric spoke in unison as they looked at each other in bewilderment before fixing their gaze back towards Laphicet. "I've never heard of a place called Midgand. We are just a few miles outside of the city of Mantle, near the town of Glayde in the Kingdom of Atlas. The orphanage got ots namesake from the continent we're on, Solitus" Gregory alluded, to which Laphicets' eyes widened in disbelief as his singular cowlick stood up straight. "H-huh?!" was all he could muster, "Umm…what about Islegand or Northgand?" he asked.

"Never heard of those either. Perhaps they are in some other continents, Remnant is a big world after all" Brother Gregory continued.  
Now this was just confusing the Malak even more. Remnant? Mantle? Atlas? He had never even heard of these names before. Though to be fair, Rokurou himself came from a faraway land of a completely different culture too, so it wasn't out of the question to assume that he himself was far away from home. A sentiment shared by Valerie as she chimed in "It seems you're far away from home, wherever this 'Midgand' or the other places you described are ".  
"So, what will you do now?" Valerie asked the boy. Laphicet felt somewhat frightened at the moment; for he now realized that he was lost and stranded in a completely foreign land. It was quite possible that he was even oceans apart from Velvet and the others. He had no idea about the customs and cultures of this place and this made his both frustrated and a bit intimidated.

"I-I…umm..well..I do have friends back home, people I care about. I don't like leaving them there all by themselves so maybe I coul-"  
"If you're thinking about leaving, I wouldn't recommend it, not at these times at least" the cleric Gregory interjected "You could easily get lost in the cold forest and the Grimm are everywhere. I'm sure you're familiar with the Grimm enough to know it is a bad idea to wander into one even if you're a huntsman"  
"I concur with Brother Gregory. It is quite dangerous at this time, especially for a child such as yourself. You were barely alive when the other children found you, I shudder to think what would've happened if we didn't get you here in time" Valerie chimed in and part of Laphicet begrudgingly agreed that she had a point. "Why don't you stay with us for the moment. There is plenty of room in the orphanage for one more child and we do have large collection of books from a generous donor. Perhaps you could learn a thing or two about the world to find your way back home."

That does seem like a reasonable offer to Laphicet, though he was still weighing his options on which would be the better choice: Trusting complete strangers in a foreign land might not be the best idea but going all alone in an unfamiliar territory would probably be even worse. He took a few seconds to come up with an answer. "I- maybe I could stay for a while here I guess" he replied to the offer.  
"A good choice, my boy" Gregory praised him "perhaps if you're lucky, you might even get adopted by a wealthy family from Atlas"  
"Adopted?" Laphicet asked.  
"This is an orphanage after all. Most of these children are victims of a Grimm attack or come from poor backgrounds. Getting adopted by a well-off family is the best way to secure a good future. Though I'm sure with such an adorable face such as yours, it shouldn't be too hard" the Cleric teased.

Laphicets' whole face reddened as he puffed his cheeks "but I'm not adorable. Boys aren't supposed to be adorable" he proclaimed with seriousness, to which the two adults let out a small giggle upon hearing his proclamation. Laphicet let out sigh in defeat, for it seems as though the two didn't take his statement seriously.  
"I'm sure that's true for you. Now come with me, I believe you would like to meet the other children" Valerie implored, to which Laphicet nodded with a smile as he followed her towards the large door. As the door opened, it revealed a large open field surrounded by a wall of forests. Lush snow had covered most of ground and trees as the piles of it blanketed the branches and leaves of trees while others were spreading out far and wide amongst the open dirt. Though he had been accustomed to cold places like Northgand before, Laphicet could still feel the chilly breeze flow through him.

However, it seemed to matter little to the children who were out playing in the field, frolicking amongst themselves. Some of them were busy playing tag or snowball fights, while others occupied themselves with building a snowman. All of them were busy doing their own thing, oblivious to the two figures emerging from the entrance of the orphanage, until one of them took notice.

"Hey, it's that kid we found!" a boy shouted. All the other children took notice of the call and immediately rushed towards Laphicet and surrounded him. The young Malak took a good look at all of the young and excited faces that had encircled him and realized that some of them looked very different from the others. For example, one boy had horns on the top of his head that resembled those of goats, while there was a girl who had fox like ears, another that had a tail of a cat while a boy on the far-left side had reptilian scales. Yet, they still resembled human enough that it made Laphicet be taken aback, though certainly not enough to shock him as he had seen all manner of strange creatures like Daemons alongside other Malakhim of different forms, shapes and sizes.  
"Look like you're doing ok" one of the boys said.

"Yeah, we were so worried about you" the girl with the fox ears chimed in. "So, are you staying with us? And what's your name?" she continued.  
"It's Laphicet" the malak answered with a warm smile, "and yeah, I think it'll be staying here a while. I wanna repay everyone here for helping me out so much"  
"Alright!" a boy cheered.  
"It looks like you'll be getting along with the other children just fine. Why don't you play and get to know them better for now? I'll help you settle in later" Sister Valerie suggested.  
"That'd be awesome! So, will you hang out with us?" one of the children asked.  
'I don't know where I 'am or how I'll get back but for now, I think I'll stay here' Laphicet thought to himself before he answered with enthusiasm "Sure! I'd love to".


	2. Chapter 2

Days turned to weeks, eventually becoming months and before he knew it, a full six months had flown by since the day Laphicet found himself on the orphanage and the place called Remnant in general. During his tenure, Laphicet took it upon himself to learn as much as he could about the new world he ended up on: the cultures, cities, societies, groups, individuals and more.

At first, things were…a bit awkward, to say the least, though ‘awkward’ was being generous here as the malak was completely out of loop and confused beyond belief at the things he was being introduced to and what he had to learn, understand and adapt to. Of course, this wasn’t even counting the feelings of complete embarrassment at having grown adults and children alike teaching him about things that were supposed to be common sense; at least to them anyways. 

To an uninitiated like him, it began with something as simple as electricity. Now he had seen lighting before and there were definitely mystic artes that made use of lightning, but to harness its power as a means of substituting fire as the source of light in darkness was nothing short of incredible. What was even more fascinating for Laphicet was the fact that this “electricity” was now used as the biggest primary source of energy after Dust, from the lights in the room, the machine that boiled water for drinking and bathing in the cold winter, to the strange things that froze and preserved food in the kitchen (called a refrigerator) and ovens that somehow made no use of fire.

Now speaking of dust, this was another subject of awe for him. These rare items resembled magical crystals and volatile sawdust that contained incredible amounts of energy. Some of the children showed him what a basic dust could do when they snuck out some fire dust and made it burst into small flames, after which Laphicet made it his priority to learn as much about dust as he could.

As with electricity and dust, another item that the people held in great esteem was something called a scroll. It certainly didn’t look like an actual scroll but rather a small thin slab of foldable glass. Yet within it contained things far beyond anything he had ever seen. The clerics taught him to use one of the few scrolls that they had within their possession and from that first meeting, Laphicet fell in love with scrolls ever since. It was like a book in the form of a slab of glass that he could interact and mess around with. He could read, listen to music (genres and styles he had never even heard of before), learn about the latest happenings in the world and more. It was essentially a library and an entertainment medium within the palm of his hand. This was something he wished his home had.

That being said, traditional books still held great significance for him; mainly due to them being one of the few things he was still familiar with and the abundance of it within the orphanages’ library. There he learned about the history of Remnant, it’s continents, the formation of its four kingdoms, their governments, social structure, culture and many more. He learned about the humans and the faunus (humanoids that resembled humans but had animal traits within them as well) that inhabited this world, their dark and honestly sad history of never-ending violence as well as the issues pertaining to prejudice for each other as well. Disturbingly, he also began to learn about the creatures called the Grimm which everyone from Sister Valerie, Brother Gregory to the children all dreaded and something that he himself realized why. Of course, this also made him feel slightly relieved in sticking with the orphanage for the time being rather than striking out on his own as it seemed to have been the smart choice: not that he couldn’t handle himself but he knew he would’ve been in trouble if he was outnumbered and if the Grimm were half as dangerous as the daemons back home. Reassuringly, he also learned about the huntsmen: trained warriors from each kingdom that protected people from Grimm and helped them in need. The way they operated seemed looser than the exorcists of the Shepherds abbey with the exception of huntsmen from Atlas but it seemed they were similar in some other ways.  
In those six months, the topics he learned gradually moved away from the foundation of Remnants’ society to the various groups or factions that held great influence over this world. It started with the councils of each kingdom that governed the state affairs, to the headmasters of each huntsmen academies, to the white fang: a faction of extremists dedicated to faunus rights. These studies also covered on sources related to military as well as private sectors like the Schnee Dust Company: a private enterprise that specialized in the production and distribution of dust.

All in all, the scroll and the library were a treasure trove of valuable knowledge that helped him gain at least a small footing on this world and understand it to a greater degree. Of course, his natural curiosity and talent for quick learning also aided him immensely. Sadly however, even with all of this information, Laphicet could only grumble in frustration over the fact that nothing was mentioned of any world beyond the main continents of Remnant; nothing spoke of the existence of Midgand or any of the other places. Even more worrying still, was the fact that every time he looked up at the night sky, a quarter of the moon was in pieces. This made him worry a great deal, for back when he was with Velvet and the others, the moon was still relatively intact. When he tried to bring the matter to the clerics and the other children, none could give him any answers for even they had no idea as to why the moon was like that. Worrying still, was the fact that they were surprised by the concept of an intact moon as they all thought it was always in a shattered state to begin with, causing a great deal of concern for Laphicet. 

Based on the state of the moon and the complete lack of information on his place of origin, Laphicet could only make his own hypothesis as to what was going on and where he was. The first was that this was in fact the same world he lived on but several centuries after and that a new civilization had been born. Now this was not an unfounded theory as ancient lost civilizations were aplenty back in his time and it wasn’t unreasonable to assume that his own civilization eventually became just another footnote in the eternal cycle of extinction and rebirth. If this case was true, then a tinge of sadness could be felt by Laphicet over the idea that everyone he loved and cared for were long gone, and if Eizen was not around, then it would seem time had passed by even further than he would have expected as Malakhim can live incredibly long lives (thousands of years in fact). Speaking of Malakhim, he hadn’t met another malak yet, though he assumed that it was merely because of the fact that he was still stuck in the orphanage. 

The Second theory, while a bit less dreadful than the first one seemed more out of this world than the former. It assumes that he is, in fact, on a completely different world through some strange phenomenon and has no way to get back. It certainly wasn’t strange with everything he had seen and what Empyreans could be capable of based on what little he once read about them; it wasn’t entirely out of the question. At the very least, if his situation was the latter, then he could at least feel relieved that his own world wasn’t dead yet and his companions were still alive out there somewhere. Sadly, the downside to this was the fact that he had no way of getting back to them and could only hope that they were getting by without him. Stranger still, was the fact that despite Eleanor being his vessel he couldn’t feel her presence or dwell on her head. Weirder still was the fact that he was relatively intact and could function without her presence for six months even if Malak can switch vessels should the need arise or they chose to.

Everything he had learned; the unfortunate implications of the knowledge that he had gained, would at times overwhelm him and disheartened him quite a bit. The idea that he was either in the future where everything and everyone he’s known and loved were gone or that he is on another world entirely and that he can never get back home to see his companions, certainly didn’t bode well for his sanity. He wasn’t sure which plausible scenario would be there to explain to him how he got here in the first place, but he definitely knew he wasn’t where he belonged. It terrified him.

But he could never give into to despair, no matter how much he felt like giving in to it. It wasn’t just a matter of virtue or a sense of morality but of practicality as well: he was aware of the dangers of a malak being affected badly by malevolence, either by external factors like overtaxing his powers or going into a very dark place and getting his emotions overwhelmed. Either way, if that were the case, he was certain he would turn into a dragon, especially considering that his pure vessel Eleanor was no longer present. Such a scenario would prove most fatal to the people in the orphanage and especially the children. So even if all seemed hopeless, Laphicet had to use every ounce of his will to control himself and push him forward, no matter how dire his situation would seem.

On that note, he would try to focus on the positives as well, to keep his mind off of things. Surprisingly the children of the orphanage, even the brash and hardy ones, took to him and welcomed him with open arms. They would find amusement in his obliviousness towards nearly everything while teaching him all that they knew. The staff were incredibly friendly and helpful as well, not only taking care of his basic needs but would also try to step in as mentors for him. In return for everything they did, Laphicet would use his mystic artes, namely his ability to heal, to help them in any way he could such as if a child was afflicted with some minor injuries while playing and was in need a quick solution. Again, as he tried to look for the positives, he was at the very least glad that some of his artes such as the ones in the form of paper (ones that he practiced in secret) and healing (which he openly flaunted) were still within his power. Of course, everyone else mistook the healing ability for his semblance, apparently an ability that individuals wielded that helped them in different ways through channeling of their aura, a physical extension of their soul. Laphicet felt that though this was not the case for him he still humored that notion for them rather than stir things up even more: He didn’t tell them the truth sure, but he wasn’t lying to them about not having any powers either.

Yet, none made him happier than being able to continue his passion for literary adventures and exploration. There was an abundance of books based on it and though most children weren’t interested in such things, Laphicet would devour the knowledge gained from them like they were his daily bread and butter. The new technology and discoveries made by Remnant surpassed anything his own world had and it only served to increase the options on researching topics that piqued his curiosity even more. Thus, every time he had an opportunity to be all by himself, he would rush to a secluded garden in the orphanages’ rear to spend time all by himself and read up on several volumes of books with not a care in the world. The peace and quiet of the little garden not only helped him forget about all of his problems but also helped reinvigorate his creativity and his desire to further out his passion for reading regardless of where he belonged. It reminded him that someone seeking to go beyond the oceans and explore the world had no place better than the entire world to called home. Remnant was a place of mysterious and exciting new opportunities that would reward him should he keep an open mind, something he convinced himself of. He didn’t know how long he would stay at the orphanage but someday he felt that he would have to strike out on his own; as that was just the way he was, and nothing was going to change that. It just as Eizen had said, his ship was his alone to steer and his creed was his alone to bear and fly with pride.

Another day, another chance to continue on with his little passions, or so Laphicet thought. He opened his eyes to the sight of the other children getting up from their beds as the clerics and nuns woke them up for their morning routine: which was to get up, brush their teeth, say their prayers, have breakfast and then go off on their merry way to play games outside. 

But Laphicet preferred heading in the opposite direction, towards the library. After breakfast, he made his way towards the mess halls’ exit, and as he reached there, he turned towards the direction of the library. But just he was heading there, he heard a voice call out to him. 

“Laphicet!” the voice shouted, which the malak responded by turning towards its direction. There he could see the source of the voice: a young girl with ginger hair, quite similar to him in age and maturity, with the ears of a fox surrounded by a few other boys and girls. “Oh, hey Nana. Did you need something?” Laphicet reciprocated, making his way towards her while doing so.   
“Chael and the others were thinking of playing king of the castle today. Wanna join us?” she offered. “Thanks, but I’m going to the library today to read up” he politely rejected the offer, shaking his head. The girl seemed a little bit dejected at hearing his answer, “really? That’s too bad” she whimpered. 

“Bah, you know how he is Nana. Laphicet and his books are like glue and paper” one of the boys spoke up before turning his gaze towards the malak, “but seriously Phi, you should hang with us more often instead of sitting in that garden all day burying yourself with books”.

“Phi again? Really?” now he hadn’t had that nickname since Velvet gave him one and while these two people were worlds apart they somehow managed to come up with the same nickname to call him for months; he was mildly annoyed by such a coincidence, not that it mattered much as he sighed, “alright, alright, how about later in the evening then? Happy Chael?” Laphicet conceded, crossing his arms while feeling a bit annoyed by the pestering. 

“Cool. But you’d better be there, otherwise Nana is going to get really mad at you” 

“Nana?”

“Yeah, didn’t you know? She’s been talking about getting you to hang out with us all morning” the boy teased, giving a coy smirk at the fox girl, whose face stiffened with an angry look as she clenched her fists and her faced turned bright red while her pointed ears straightened in attention. 

“Whoops, looks like that’s my cue to get outta here. See ya bookworm” Chael said, making a mad dash for the exit that led to the open fields. The others quickly followed suit leaving only Laphicet and Nana, whose face returned to normal as she heaved a sigh of relief.

“What was all that about?” Laphicet asked, tilting his head to the side as he usually did when he was confused. 

“U-Umm…i-it’s nothing” Nana quickly replied, nervously fidgeting her hands as she broke off eye contact to look in the other directions, “soooo a-anyways, you’ll come, won’t you?”

“Yeah, I’ll try” he replied with nod.

“Oh... that’s good to know.” She said, as a big grin formed up on her face, “Umm, anyways I’m gonna go with the others now since I don’t wanna keep you standing around any longer, so see you later then, Laphicet?”

“Sure, thing Nana” Laphicet said. Nana smiled as she nodded before turning around and started walking in the opposite direction while Laphicet did the same. 

As the young malak his way past the entrance of the library door, he was greeted at the receptionist desk by a very, very old man.   
“Do my eyes deceive me or is that a little potato walking over to me?” he spoke, holding onto to his spectacles with shaking hands as he hunched himself closer to the boy to get a better look at him. 

“Hehehe, it’s me Mr. Henry, Laphicet!” Laphicet happily answered. If there was ever a stereotype for aging, docile old men, Henry would fit that description very well: Shiny bald head, a toothless wrinkly smile that never left his face, white beard , eyes that barely opened, round spectacles, hunched back, hands that shake all the time and a tendency to never lose his composure. Of all the people Laphicet made friends with, Henry was the biggest in age gap. Despite the differences in how humans and malakhim age, Henry was in the twilight of his life, meaning he would be older than most of the newborn malakhim and stay that way till he passed. Speaking of age, his relationship with Henry was certainly a unique in that with the old man, Laphicet felt like this was what it would have been like to have a grandfather, something he never had or could have. It helped that the old man was always affable and reciprocated that sentiment, cracking unfunny elderly jokes, teaching him how to read and write with the new tools and instruments that Remnant had while providing his insight into the world through his own experience. 

Laphicet learned from Henry that he was not an official member of the organization of clerics that ran the orphanage but rather a volunteer. He was formerly a medical engineer with a wife and two children, though years had passed since then as his children were now grown adults with kids of their own while he and his wife retired from official work. The old man chose to work as a librarian partly out of a desire to help children in need and partly in defiance of his age. The children, Laphicet included, filled in the void for his grandchildren that he and his wife missed dearly out of not seeing them often. 

“Ah yes, of course, the little scholar has returned” he affectionately announced, “so what books will it be this time?”.

“The Floras and Faunas of Solitus please” Laphicet happily answered.

“Just the one today?” he paused “ah yes, yes, of course” the old librarian resumed as he slowly made his way towards the specified shelf, gingerly picking up the book and bringing it to the desk. “Here it is” he said, gently placing the large book on the desk, after which he picked up a smaller notebook and a small instrument bag, placing them next to the book as well, “don’t forget these as well, I’ve been keeping them safe for you”.

“Thanks Mr. Henry” the malak replied, taking the items from the desk. 

“No need for that. I’m glad a boy of your age is taking an interest in these things instead of those dreadful comic books my son and my grandson used to bury themselves in”

Laphicet giggled at that statement, “I’m sure they just really loved what they were reading. Anyways, I’ve gotta go Mr. Henry” he said, making his way towards the exit.

“Ah well, nothing to be done about it. Take care of those books my boy and don’t forget to bring them back here when you’re done” Henry ordered.

“I will!” Laphicet answered, waving as he made his way past the door.

Morning gave way to midday as Laphicet buried himself writing down information from the book onto his notes in a hut on the small garden that had become his dwelling place. It was a peaceful and tranquil place filled with lovely scenery from the tiny stream to the beautiful tundra flowers that dominated the greenery as the sights and sounds of insects and birds became the only source of significant noise; the perfect place to focus on such mental activity as hardly anyone came by to disturb him.

For the most part, Laphicet was busy writing down or sketching everything he could learn from the book into one of his notebooks, something he decided to do on a frequent basis as a way of gathering up his personal wealth of information. He tried to cover as many topics as he possible could, anything that was related to facts, trivia and exploration in fact. Perhaps, he had more in common with Eizen and Eleanor than he originally thought, since those two, and especially Eizen loved these kinds of things. Humorously for the other children and clerics (much to his chagrin and embarrassment again), before their introduction to him, instruments such as pencils, pens, dividers, miniature compasses and other geometry items were completely alien to him as well, for back in his own world, the quill and the ink were the only ways of writing besides some magical glyphs. Nevertheless, he was grateful for having been introduced to them as they were several times more effective and convenient as well as time saving than what he would have had to use back in his old world. However, getting immersed in his own little world rendered him oblivious to the fact that he was not alone anymore as another figure made their way towards him, though nothing seemed to really matter to the young malak at that point as he was busy trying to refine his sketch of a flower he had drawn for his notes. As he tried to remove some of the lines he found undesirable, the intensity in which he stroked the eraser caused it to slip from his hands and make its’ way to the small stream, while Laphicet looked on in panic as he desperately tried to catch it only for it to seem futile. Fortunately, at the last possible second second a hand caught it before it reached its watery grave.

“Is this yours?” the figure reached out to give the eraser to the boy, who looked up to see who it was. “Oh, thank you” Laphicet replied, reaching out his own hand to receive it. As he did so, he continued to get a good look at this person. She was a tall, frail woman with pale skin and hair white as snow ; her attire was more on the extravagant side in comparison to the staff who worked at the orphanage as it consisted of a white cravat connected by a silver brooch set finished with a red stone along with a light purple jacket with light sleeves, and a wide belt around her waist while her hair was worn like a ponytail hanging over her shoulder.

“Would it be alright with you if I shared a seat here” the woman asked again, causing Laphicet to immediately get out of his stupor and shake his head. “It’s okay, I don’t mind” he answered with a cheerful smile before returning to his seat while the woman sat on the other side of the hut. 

Minutes had passed yet nothing eventful had happened, which was kind of worrying for Laphicet. Most of the time, when someone approached him, no matter who it was or what age, that person would always be there to strike up a conversation with him and he would gladly return the sentiment. There were times when it was he who initiated the conversation though it was with people with whom he thought the outcome would be the ones he expected. This time though, it was different; as there was something eerie yet uncomfortable about the whole scenario he was facing. As he shifted his gaze from his books to the woman, he could see her staring off into the distance, not paying any mind to his presence or perhaps everything else as well. Getting a better look at the woman, Laphicet could pick out the more subtle details of her features that he had missed earlier, especially around her face: there were bags under her eyes suggesting that she may have been crying or suffering from exhaustion and lack of sleep while the monotonous stance on her lips were contradicted by the lowering of her eyebrows that gave way to gentle blue eyes. All in all, she just looked…...sad.

The young malak had been in a number of embarrassing situations but never had he ever felt this much discomfort before. Though perhaps it would be easier to say that he had never felt more uncomfortable in his entire life than when he was now. He could sense an incredible amount of malevolence emanating from her, though she had yet to turn into a daemon. This worried him a lot and the implications of what could happen terrified him and yet, something about her just satiated his curiosity even more. The woman just radiated melancholy and yet, she wasn’t suffering from any of the symptoms of turning into a daemon; as far as he knows there was no empyrean or therion that he knew of in Remnant to contain such an affliction but then again, he hadn’t seen Remnant in its’ entirety yet. 

It was then that Laphicet decided that he would take the initiative to break the ice, preferably to break out of this awkward situation he felt he was in. He took a deep breath and readied to open his mouth…….only for the steely gaze of the woman to suddenly shift towards him as she may have noticed him staring at her for a good while causing the malaks’ eyes to widen before he quickly turned his face down staring at his notebook intensely all the while pretending to not notice the lady having turned her full attention towards him.

“A flower?” she inquired, curiously leaning over to look at Laphicets’ notes, “awfully strange for a boy of your age to take an interest in such things”

“W-well, it’s just…. I think it’s cool, that’s all” Laphicet answered, slowly lifting his face from the book. “What about you Miss- “

“It’s Willow” the lady quickly replied “and your name is?”

“Laphicet” he asserted, a gentle smile forming on his face, “So anyway, what are you doing here Miss Willow” the boy continued. Indeed, it was a question he never even thought to ask himself before: Who was she? And what was she doing here? Was she an intruder? If so, how did she get here? If not, did she arrived here as a guest without him even knowing anything? And to be fair, he did spend his entire morning in the garden with nary a care in the world.

“Me?” the woman says, seemingly curious as to the question asked. “Well, I came by to donate a few of my belongings for the orphanage and thought I’d spend some time alone here. Of course, I did not expect someone else to be here as well.”

“So, you’re not adopting anyone?” the malak continued prying. Once something had captured his curiosity, there was very little else that could satiate it.

“Goodness no. The children here are wonderful but I already have three burdens to bear with” she answers bluntly as she lowers her eyes and her head faces downwards, almost as if it the conversation sparked up a bad memory. “But …...it has been…...difficult at times. They’re not as lively as they once were and…. sometimes I feel like it’s all my fault. As if I’ve failed them miserably” small droplets of tears trickling down from her eyes as she turned to look elsewhere. 

It was then that Laphicet probably guessed as to why she was giving off such a melancholic aura. He didn’t know the full story and yet he felt like he knew enough to know what was going on just from the observations he made on her body language. Never having any parents of his own (being a malak born from a deceased human) and having been raised by a group of misfits probably meant he wouldn’t be the best person to truly help her in this situation since he could never know what it felt like to truly have a blood family. Yet, something about her was compelling every fiber of his being to help her in any way he could no matter how futile it would be. Maybe it was the fact that he couldn’t stand seeing someone sad, or perhaps him not having a birth family meant he could resonate with his own feelings of loneliness and isolation despite its difference. No matter the reason, the boy took a deep breath once again and readied himself.

“ If it makes you feel any better, Miss Willow, maybe they’re just having a really hard time telling you how they really feel too” he nervously assured her, causing the woman to quickly wipe back the tears as she faced him again, with a small sad smile forming upon her lips. “Thank you dear, but it’s me who’s having trouble telling it to them. There was a time a time I could freely say it but……not anymore” she answers back, “now the walls between us have shut the ties we once had for good”.

“Well I think you shouldn’t give up!” the malak suddenly asserted, causing the woman to look at him with curiosity. “Someone once told me that even if it feels insurmountable, we shouldn’t give up!” he voices loudly, before quickly calming down and fidgeting his fingers, “s-so……just try again with your kids. Just…. tell them how you really feel, even if it’s awkward or hard. I’m sure they’ll understand”.

Seeing such kindness and resolve in the boy’s words, Willow couldn’t help but let out a giggle. She hadn’t had someone say such things to her in a long time, and from a child no less. “It’s not quite as easy for me as you would believe it to be, but…. I’ll take what you said into consideration” she says with a gentle smile,” still, quite strange for a boy like you to know such things. Perhaps you’ve experienced such feelings before?”.

“I…used to hang around with different people before I came here. I never had parents of my own but they were like my family. They taught me everything they knew, protected me and took care of me. But most importantly, they taught me to be my own person” Laphicet explains, obviously omitting out most of the facts, most importantly his malakhim heritage and the fact that his surrogate family consisted of a wanted criminal that consumed living beings, a malak pirate, a daemon infected vagabond bent on killing his brother, a former exorcist and a strange witch. 

“Do you miss them?” Willow asks.

“Yeah, all the time, but I know wherever they are, they’re making the best out of their life” he says with a sad tone.

“I see. And what about you? Are you making the most of your life?”

Laphicet places his right hand on his chin, pondering the question before coming up with an answer, “I wanna learn everything I can about Remnant and then I wanna explore all of it”

“Aren’t you a little too young for things like exploring the whole world yet?” she questions, letting out a chuckle.

“Yeah, but I’m gonna get taller soon and when that happens, I’m gonna see everything that there is in this world! That’s my dream!” he loudly proclaims. 

A short burst of laughter fills the air as Laphicet looks on with surprise upon seeing Willow’s demeanor shift from gloomy to something more lighthearted, not that it was a bad thing. “Is something wrong?” he asks.

“No, nothing at all dear child. It’s just…...well, you remind me somewhat of my daughter Weiss. That tenacity, that drive, that fire in your eyes; she too has it all. Once she sets her mind to something, she does not waver” Willow answers.

“You must be really proud of her!” the boy states clenching his fists together and with a bright smile. Willow and Weiss, now those were names he had heard of once but he just couldn’t put his finger on it and that was on top of the way the woman looked, as if he had seen her somewhere before. Perhaps if he knew the surnames he could find out. 

“Indeed I ‘am. I’m proud of all of them. But” suddenly her mood shifted back to that melancholic state once again, “who they are now and everything they’ve accomplished so far is in spite of me, not because of me. I haven’t spoken to them in a long while and for that, they’ve resented me. Especially Weiss”

Just when he thought he was getting somewhere with her, it felt like they were back to square one. ‘She keeps bringing it back to how terrible she is as a parent, …...maybe something bad must’ve really happened to her family’ Laphicet thought deeply. This lady looked like she had completely given up on living and just wants to waste away. It was a sad, sad state to be in; something Laphicet was very familiar with seeing as Velvet herself was once on the verge of despair before but he couldn’t remember why or where and this lapse in memory was something that disturbed him greatly. However, in Willows case, it seems that she was trying to cope by just shutting down completely, thus becoming an empty shell of a person filled with nothing but grief and hatred for oneself, all the while slowly drifting herself into decay.

‘Well, if I’m gonna do it, might as well do it now’ he confided to himself. Something about this situation just compelled him to keep trying to help her. Perhaps it was because in his heart he yearned for a family of his own and desired it as much as he valued his independence, and seeing the woman potentially lose hers just didn’t sit well with him. Whatever the reasons were, he took a deep breath again and exhaled, as he tore out a page from his notebook containing a pressed flower before he got down from his bench and made his way over to the woman.

“Um, I’m not really good with stuff like this. B-but if it makes you feel any better, you can have this” Laphicet reached his hands out, holding a piece of paper as he directed his face elsewhere with his eyes closed, redness forming on his cheeks. Willow looked genuinely taken aback by this forthcoming act before taking the paper with a smile, as the young malak heaved a sigh of relief, opening his eyes and facing her. Taking a good look at it, she could see that a single flower had been pressed in the paper for preservation.: A beautiful white Magnolia by the looks of it. “S-so if you’re feeling bad about things, you can just talk to me, Miss Willow. I’ll listen” he continued.

‘To think that a child would be the one to offer me emotional support, how low I’ve fallen’ Willow thought to herself before coming up with an answer “Hmm, is it not the adults who are the ones who are supposed to offer such help to children and not the other way around?” she says with a tint of shame. Slowly but surely, she got up and started walking past Laphicet before turning around “but still, I appreciate the thought.”

“It’s alright. I’m glad I can help” Laphicet answers.

Willow looks on with a gentle smile before turning away from him. “Laphicet right? I’ll keep what you said in mind.” 

There’s something about that boy but I can’t put my finger on it. When he talked to me, I feel like something good has finally come into my life for the first time in a long time. And with that she walked away, leaving the young malak all by his lonesome in the garden, unable to help herself as her smile remained.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note:  
> To anyone who might ask or probably will ask, I’am NOT going to ship Willow with Laphicet, Lol! I don’t have the writing talents to write such a thing tastefully. You’re all welcome to try though 😊.   
> Anyways, hope you enjoy it.

**Author's Note:**

> I actually made this one on another site, but thought I'd published it here as well. I'll be posting subsequent chapters here as well. Probably not something I'm gonna take that seriously, but if this gives you some entertainment and makes you happy while we're all stuck in quarantine lockdown, then it's alright with me.  
> Stay safe and heres hoping for better months ahead.


End file.
